Each one of us is a medium for communication.
Each one of us is a river that flows to the sea.
Each one of us is an individual-
Independent, unique, and linked-
To all who have been and all who will be.
writings
Because visual messages are products of our sense of sight, pictures are highly emotional objects that have long-lasting staying power within the grayest regions of our brain. Media messages that stereotype individuals by their concentrations, frequencies, and omissions become a part of our long-term memory. The media typically portray members of diverse cultural groups within specific content categories-usually crime, entertainment, and sports-and almost never within general interest, business, education, health, and religious content categories. And when we only see pictures of criminals, entertainers, and sports heroes, we forget that the vast majority of people-regardless of their particular cultural heritage-have the same hopes and fears as you or me.
In the Images that Injure book, there are essays concerning the cultural images of Native Americans, Africans, Mexicans, Pacific Islanders, Arabs, Anglos, Jewish persons, women, men, children, older adults, the physically disabled, blind persons, large persons, gay and lesbian persons, teachers, politicians, lawyers, police officers, religious followers, media personnel, and media victims. Chances are, the mental image you have of a member of one of those cultural groups is one that is mediated-it comes from either print, television, motion pictures, or computers.
Most media experts come up with several reasons why the media stereotype:
* Advertisers that demand quickly interpreted shortcut pictures,
* Lazy or highly pressured reporters that don't take or have the time to explore issues within their multifaceted and complex contexts,
* Few members of diverse cultural groups working as photographers, reporters, editors, or publishers in an organization,
* The presumed, conditioned expectations of readers and viewers to only accept images of diverse members within a limited range of content categories, and regrettably, and often denied,
* Culturism. Culturism is a term I use to describe the belief that one cultural group-whether based on ethnicity, economics, education, etc.-is somehow better or worse than some other cultural group. Culturism may explain why mainstream media are slow to cover human catastrophes in remote sections of the world such as in Rwanda, Somalia, and South-Central, Los Angeles.
But once again I remind you-and myself-that we see stereotypes in the media because we stereotype in our society. And you know this is true. There are signals, warning signs, and obvious examples everywhere we turn:
* Next time you're in a public restroom, notice the disabled persons' stall. Have you ever seen someone in a wheelchair using that toilet? Something is wrong.
* Next time you're sitting in your seat on an airplane, notice that almost always the flight attendants are women while the voice welcoming you to 35,000 feet is a man's. Something is wrong.
* Next time you're watching a video movie that features a child at home alone successfully defending himself against two, large burglars, notice how easy it all is for the boy. Something is wrong. And
* The next time you're watching a basketball game, notice how often all the players on the court are African American while all the fans in the stands are screaming Anglos. Something is wrong.
If you're not willing to change what you know is true in society, there is little chance of there ever being a change in media images. The media provide a message and that message is that the media is you and me.
The slide presentation begins with one in a series of three images I made of a man sitting on the steps of city hall in downtown Dallas during a protest rally while I was a photojournalism student at the University of Texas at Austin. The other two images of the gentleman come at the beginning of the "Images that Heal" section and at the end of the presentation.
I introduce the slide presentation with:
This is one of the first photographs I ever made. And although I never spoke to this man, never learned his name, and only spent 1/500th of a second with him, he has taught me, over the years, more about myself, about photography, and about people than many educators, friends, and family members I have known my entire life. One lesson is-don't jump to conclusions. Resist your automatic, brain-commanded categories. Wait. Be patient. Have the courage to trust. There may be other tiny moments to see of a person's life that reveal larger truths. And now I want to show a collection of images that do and do not stereotype. The pictures at the end of the following presentation come from a section of the Images that Injure book titled "Images that Heal."
I include music with the slide presentation because it helps reinforce the message of the images. The "Images that Injure" section includes the musical selection by Enya titled, "Boadicea," which is a somber, instrumental work that invokes a serious mood. The "Images that Heal" section of the presentation includes Joan Osborne's hit of last year, "One of Us," an optimistic anthem for understanding the unique qualities in every person.
I conclude my lecture with these tips for avoiding pictures that stereotype:
* Show members of diverse cultural groups in everyday life situations,
* Have the courage to explore in words and pictures the underlying social problems at the heart of a violent act,
* Establish national competitions that foster positive portrayals of members from diverse cultural groups,
* Advocate more space and time in print, broadcast, and computer media to publish long-term photojournalism projects that set a more fully explained context for the single images we usually see,
* Learn all you can about visual literacy so you can really look at the images in newspapers, magazines, and on your local television news show, and
* Take the time to study the snapshots of your family and friends and the images printed, broadcast, and downloaded and question yourself and all who will listen about the meaning and ethics of the images we make and see.
I conclude the presentation with this poem:
writings